Recession shrinks the generation gap – I wonder

This article in Forbes follows the well trodden path of arguing that the recession is making us all better and caring people. OK, it doesn’t say so in words of one syllable but that’s the core hypothesis.

Here are a couple of quotes.

Everyone feels guilty about consuming so much with so little thought---buying things we didn't need with money we didn't have. While the recession may not give us much choice in the matter, spending less and saving more--and living within our means--actually feels like the natural course.

After more than a decade of candy-coated materialism, just about everyone is losing the taste for superficial treats. The generation gap doesn't seem so big anymore: Younger and older people alike are looking for substance in their lives. Young adults are embracing a spirit of collective activism that hasn't been seen since the boomers were their age. Older men and women are communicating regularly via technologies that barely existed five years ago. We have more in common than ever before.

My advice to marketers is to be suspicious of these simplistic ideas. I am sure it driven more by wishful thinking than research. Dick Stroud